Known belt conveyors comprise lateral guide elements for the conveyed products, these guide elements generally being connected to the support structure of the belt conveyor or conveyors by a plurality of parts comprising a pin and a clamping head for said pin.
It should be noted that the lateral guide elements can take various forms and that the pins may also support other usual conveyor components, for example rollers or photoelectric cells.
In known clamping members a portion of the pin is inserted into a through hole provided in the clamping head and is rigidly secured thereto by a screw. This latter engages in a threaded hole perpendicular to and communicating with that into which the pin is inserted, such that the end of the screw can make contact with that pin portion housed in the head, and which on tightening the screw becomes rigidly secured to the head. To facilitate tightening of the screw, it generally carries an associated handwheel or handle.
The operations involved in tightening the screw to position the guide elements and more generally the conveyor components in the desired manner are relatively burdensome in terms both of time and of the effort required.
It should also be noted that in known systems the pin is secured to the relative head only if the screw is sufficiently tightened. However it often happens that the screw slackens with the passage of time or, because of lack of attention, is not tightened with the necessary force.